This invention relates in general to the spraying of livestock and more particularly to an automatic spraying system for applying insecticides and the like to cattle and other animals.
The proper care of livestock requires that the animals be periodically treated with insecticides and other substances. Typically, the cattle are rounded up and sprayed by a hand-held sprayer. As can easily be appreciated, this method of insecticide application involves considerable time and labor on the part of the person or persons carrying out the spraying operation. Perhaps even more importantly, the manual spraying of livestock is such an unpleasant task that it is often neglected or delayed unduly, and the cattle suffer accordingly.
In attempts to eliminate the need for manual spraying of livestock, various types of automatic spray systems have been proposed, as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,884,192 and 4,165,715 to Knapp, U.S. Pat. No. 3,949,709 to Meyers and U.S. Pat. No. 4,126,104 to Overby. Spray devices such as those shown in the aforementioned patents have not been successful, due in large part to their high cost and undue complexity. All of these devices require a large and complicated frame which forms both sides of a restricted animal passageway, and spray nozzles must be located on both sides of the frame in order to adequately spray the body of the animal. The specially constructed animal passages which are formed by the machines tend to frighten the animals and cause them to resist moving through the passage. The machines that spray in response to the movement of an animal through the device in either direction use an excessive amount of treatment fluid, while those such as Myers which spray in only one direction include complicated mechanisms for deactivating the sprayer when the animal travels in the opposite direction.
The devices which are treadle operated require a special raised floor for the treadle mechanism, and this adds significantly to the cost and complexity and to the resistance of the animals to the spray equipment. The complicated devices that activate the spray nozzles also increase the cost and complexity of the machine. Another problem with the spraying equipment that has been proposed in the past is that the spray nozzles and other components are positioned where they are susceptible to being damaged by the animals.
The present invention is directed to an improved spray system for livestock and has, as its primary goal, the provision of an animal spray apparatus which is simple and economical to construct and install and which thoroughly and uniformly applies treatment fluid to livestock.
More specifically, it is an important object of the invention to provide an animal operated spray apparatus which automatically sprays one side portion of an animal passing in one direction and the other side when the animal returns in the opposite direction. Consequently, the spray nozzles can all be mounted on one side of the animal passageway, and there is no need to connect hoses and the like to both sides as is necessary in prior art equipment.
Another object of the invention is to provide a spray apparatus having a frame that is smaller and simpler than the frames of the spray devices proposed in the past. The frame can be bolted or otherwise mounted to a surface such as a gate located on one side of an already existing passage through which animals routinely move during feeding, drinking or other activity. As a result, there is no need for the frame to form both sides of an animal passage, and the frame can be simplified considerably in comparison to the frames of prior art devices.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a spray apparatus of the character described in which the spray nozzles are located and arranged to apply treatment fluid to the animal in a thorough and uniform manner for effective treatment of insects and other afflictions. The spray heads are arranged in two pairs, each of which includes an upper nozzle for thoroughly spraying the head and back of the animal and a lower nozzle for spraying the side portion of the animal. One pair of nozzles sprays one side of the animal passing in one direction, and the other side of the animal is sprayed by the other pair of nozzles when the animal returns in the opposite direction.
In conjunction with the preceding object, it is a further object of the invention to provide, in a spray apparatus of the character described, an improved actuator mechanism for activating and deactivating the spray nozzles at appropriate times to thoroughly treat the animals without waste of the treatment fluid.
An additional object of the invention is to provide a spray apparatus of the character described which operates in a safe and reliable manner without frightening or harming the animals.
A still further object of the invention is to provide, in a spray apparatus of the character described, a guardrail which effectively keeps the animals away from the spray nozzles and other components which could be damaged if encountered by the animals.
Other and further objects of the invention, together with the features of novelty appurtenant thereto, will appear in the course of the following description.